


Breaking the Looking Glass

by wellthizizdeprezzing



Series: Wonderland Adventures [2]
Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: Adventure, Alice in wonderland adventure part two, Alice through the Looking Glass - Freeform, F/F, Hidden Meaning, Magic, Mirrors, Romance, self exploration
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-06-21
Packaged: 2019-10-29 03:05:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17799953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wellthizizdeprezzing/pseuds/wellthizizdeprezzing
Summary: When Akko got lost in Wonderland, Diana went looking for her. Now, it's Akko's turn to go save her friend after Diana gets trapped in a parallel world, and to finally lay to rest the unresolved questions about the friendship between them. Sequel to Take me to Wonderland.





	1. Through the Talking Mirror

* * *

Through the looking glass we go  
Risking everything for what might be  
All the things you used to know  
When your heart was young enough to see-  _Through the Looking Glass, Wonderland_

* * *

Diana was avoiding Akko, and for once, it wasn't Akko's fault that there was bad tension between them. No, for the first time in her perfect life, Diana had messed something up, something that she feared was beyond repair.

Several weeks ago, while the school had still been undergoing major repairs after the great battle held in it, Diana and her friends, along with Akko and her friends, had been having a picnic by the river. A rabbit had appeared from the bushes and ended their fun by stealing Sucy's prized mushroom. Akko, being the darling friend she was, had raced off to chase the animal down, and Diana, the cautious person she was, had gone after Akko knowing of the young witch's affinity for getting into trouble. Yet, it had been Diana who had gotten into trouble. She'd ended up in a wondrous landscape of nonsense and deep revelations through twisted tongue. She'd gone through peril after peril until she'd finally procured and secured Akko's safety. They'd then been able to leave the world and just as they had been about to leave, Diana, imbued with confidence from her success in saving Akko, had blurted out her true feelings only to come awake.

In front of Akko, who had heard everything.

Mortified, Diana had taken to avoiding Akko with vehemence and by utilizing every skill under her belt. She couldn't stand the thought that Akko knew Diana had a crush on her. Diana herself hadn't known she was crushing on the brunette until her own mind had told her she was. Which was odd. How had her mind been able to create such a wildly complex world? A world where she saw familiar faces which lead her to places of discovery. Why such a dream? Why did it take that to notice her own feelings for the troublemaker?

Diana had taken to researching on dreams and on Wonderland and while her studies had taken her closer to the magic properties of dreams, she hadn't yet discovered the exact issue she had encountered. And there was no way she was going to ask a teacher. If she did, she would have to tell them all the details of the dream and that was something that wasn't going to happen.

So, it was research on her own until then. Good thing she had permission from her professors to enter the restricted parts of the archives were highly secretive and ancient magics were found. That was were she spent most of her afternoons at because it was the one foolproof place that Akko could not find her at. She swore the girl was trying harder and harder each day to reach her. Diana had been hoping that Akko would give up after a while, but she should have known better. The girl was as stubborn as a mule. After all, how many times had Diana downed Akko only for the brunette to get up from where she had been trampled down to the ground and stand tall and proud in her beliefs and efforts, even if she was in error.

Diana found herself having to employ magic in avoiding Akko. She'd cast invisibility spells, teleport herself places, and even done cheap tricks on Akko, such as leaving a banana peel for her to slip on when she chased after Diana. But Akko was getting better at anticipating Diana's tricks and Diana was running out of ways to well, run from Akko.

Sooner or later she'd be forced to confront Akko, as Lotte and Sucy liked to point out.

"She's sad, you know, that you won't talk to her. That you're avoiding her," Lotte had pointed out timidly and Diana sighed out guilty. Too busy avoiding Akko, she failed to avoid her friends.

"I'm not avoiding her," Diana said, though she clearly was. "A Cavendish does not avoid their problems."

"Why is Akko a problem?" Lotte asked and Diana cursed herself for slipping up stupidly.

"I didn't say she was. You're imagining things. And I think you should make better use of your time than to come up with false scenarios,'" Diana said rudely, turning up her nose.

Lotte shook her head sadly but moved on, dismissed. "What happened to you, Diana? Why are you so mean?"

But Diana merely stood there, not looking at Lotte leave. She wouldn't let Lotte make her feel bad. Diana had to avoid the brunette or else her shame would be put on display.

Sucy was harder to deal with, only because the witch's tongue was sharp like ice and poisoned like a mushroom. "You're being a coward. Refusing to act smartly about this- I thought you were supposed to be the smartest witch here, but clearly you're the dumbest one. And they say Akko is dumb, but at least she's true to her heart."

"Don't you dare insult me!" Diana shot back, haughty anger filling her features. Her mortification of being reminded about this situation turning to anger about their insistence that she deal with it.

"We all heard what you said that day," Sucy said nastily and Diana flushed. "I don't know why you deny it. Maybe if you talked to Akko about it you'd find that-"

"I'm not going to stand here and let you keep talking down to me," Diana crossed her arms over her chest.

"It didn't bother you when you were the one talking down to us," Sucy pointed out and Diana closed her eyes and turned her nose up.

"I'm done with this unpleasantness." Then she strode off, fuming at the problems she had caused for herself.

Even Amanda had come to speak to her and that too had been an annoying conversation to hold.

"Hey, stop being such a bitch," Amanda's uncouth voice followed Diana as she left the library to go back to her room.

"I would watch your tongue if I were you," Diana warned, so stressed from countless restless nights and days of her shame eating at her for her verbal blunder, that she really was itching for a fight.

"Or what? You gon cut it off?" Amanda goaded.

"Don't tempt me," Diana said as evenly as she could. She really was trying to hold her temper but it was hard to do so when she was slacking on her work because of her thoughts running rampant when it came to thinking of Akko.

It wasn't that Diana didn't want to see Akko. On the contrary she she would love to spend time with the girl. After discovering her emotions she felt drawn to spend more time with the brunette than ever. She wanted to talk to her, to see that bright smile stretch the shorter girl's face, to laugh with her. Talking to Akko was soothing, like listening to a stream babble, which was how Akko talked most of the time-a stream of babbling. Even though Akko was high energy Diana liked it. Diana herself was low energy, a calmly flickering fire, yearning to consume more, and Akko was that energy to help Diana feel more upbeat and happy. And being happy soothed Diana. Thus, she was angry and cranky now because her flame was glimmering highly, not feeding her fires of ambition to do good work, but merely fueling her negative feelings and reinforcing her the pain of missing Akko. There was no water to douse it out, to relax her and let her focus on other things.

"I dare ya too," Amanda stuck out her tongue and put her fingers in her ears, before wagging both her tongue and hands. She did this all the way back to Diana's room, the blonde feeling her forehead vein throb as she tried her to best to ignore it. When she got to her room she slammed the door loudly behind her. Due to her high class breeding, she only allowed herself this small rude gesture.

"Stop hiding away you coward! Go talk to Akko before I bust your ass!"

Diana scoffed in disgust at Amanda's wording. "Rude." Then she went to bury herself into her work.

Eventually everything came to a head a week later-seven weeks in total after Diana had initially started to avoid Akko. Akko and friends had decided to lay a trap for Diana after class one day. Wands blazing magic, trap spells meant to freeze or hold Diana in place went soaring through the air. Luckily Barbara and Hannah were there too. They brandished their wands and held back Sucy's, Amanda's and Lotte's attacks while Diana flew down the hall to her room where she could barricade herself and be safe. Normally she'd stay by her friends sides and help them, but it was her they wanted and the sooner she was off, the sooner they'd leave her friends alone.

Or so she hoped. But Akko was waiting for her at the end of the hall that went to her room, so Diana took a sharp left into a detour. "Diana, wait!" Akko pleaded behind her. "I just want to talk to you!" They began a chase in a little used part of Luna Nova. This was a wing that had yet to be reconstructed after the war.

Diana didn't respond to that, merely took out her own wand and without looking backwards, blocked the flimsy spells Akko sent her way. "Diana, please! What did I do wrong? How did I offend you? Just talk to me! We're friends, aren't we?"

The pleading in Akko's voice hurt Diana's heart but the blonde didn't dare stop because than that meant she would have to talk about her feelings and she wasn't ready for that, especially when Akko only thought of her as a friend.

Diana launched an ice spell at the floor behind her and Akko let out a squeak of surprise as she slipped on it, falling to her butt. There, that bought Diana some time. The blonde ducked into a room and leaned against the door, breathing hard. She was out of shape, not used to running long distances. Akko was, and had almost caught up to her.

Diana needed a moment to recuperate and then find a way out safely. As she regained her breath, she saw she'd run into a room that was plain in decor. The walls were white, the floors gray, and there was no furniture there, everything covered in thick layers of dust. This room must not have been used in a while. It only had one giant mirror hung on the wall opposite her. She could see her frazzled appearance in it, cheeks red, hair tousled from wind. It was the only clean thing in the room, the surface shining.

As she looked on, writing appeared on the glass, in a golden script.

_Trying to run and hide..._

_Trying to find peace from your problem..._

_Well, why don't you come inside..._

_A journey can solve them..._

"What?" Diana hiked up a brow, intrigued. What manner of magical object was this? Diana racked her brain for anything she might have heard about a mirror that talked to people in script but nothing came to mind. Her feet took three steps forward without her consent. And, the mirror was also suggesting her to come inside it? One couldn't walk through mirrors. And a journey? What journey?

Curiosity sparked inside her. She found that she couldn't tear her eyes away from the mirror even if she tried. As she got closer and closer to the object, the writing changed.

_From your problem we can shelter you..._

_In the coldest blue..._

_No one will bother you..._

_Not even what is a lie and what is true..._

As she watched with wide open eyes, the reflection in the mirror changed. Suddenly she was staring at herself, only her clothes were inversed. Her dress was black, and her sash white. Her hair was the same color, just washed out like the color from it had been drained. And her eyes were red. She raised a hand to touch the mirror, her image mirroring her. It moved around fingers like metallic water.

Diana could hear someone pounding on the door behind her. It must be Akko. The girl had to have found her. "Diana open this door!" The knob turned but Diana had made sure to lock it. Now there was a slamming sound, as if Akko was ramming her shoulder into the wood and trying to break down the door.

"Ouch!" came Akko's pained cry as she hurt her shoulder predictably.

Diana ignored all that, the tug the mirror had on her intensifying. The image of the room disappeared as white covered everything except the image of the oddly colored Diana. A snow covered landscape appeared, complete with bare trees and a trail through the woods.

_We will take pity..._

_On your broken heart..._

_Snowdrop and Kitty..._

_Will tear anyone apart..._

Now Diana's fingers were sinking into the mirror, than her hand, as the other Diana pulled on her fingers. Walking through the mirror was like jumping into a pool after sitting out in the sun. Cold, almost painfully so. It took her breath away. She closed her eyes as she went in. Some snow from the other world landed on the floor around the mirror while wooden shards of the now broken down door landed on the other side of the room. Akko had finally been joined by Amanda who had had the bright idea to blast the door down.

"Diana, no!" Akko saw as Diana's leg was sucked into the mirror, the rest of the girl wholly on the other side. "Diana!" But that Diana couldn't hear her, her back to Akko and the real world. But the discolored Diana heard and shot back an evil grin, as if saying 'she's mine now'.

"Akko, wait!" Amanda called out as Akko charged into the mirror. The other world was beginning to fade from it's glass already as the two girls got smaller and smaller as they walked away. The edges curled into the center, wiping smooth.

"Diana!" Akko cried out and jumped head first, hoping she would make it. What was left of the image was small but Akko was just small enough. She closed her eyes on impact and went through.

She found herself eating snow as she pulled herself up to her feet. "Yay! I did it!" Akko did a cheery little dance before it dawned on her exactly what she had done. "Oh no! I did it!" she sighed out dejectedly and turned to see Amanda's worried face, screaming something as the mirror here turned smooth, only reflecting Akko once more and the several feet of snow surrounding her. She had gotten here, but she had no idea how she would get out.

Whelp, she could figure that out when the time came, like she always did. She never did have a plan for things, just went right with it.

Surprisingly it wasn't cold. In fact, it felt like an early fall day. And the snow didn't even touch Akko. It melted before it landed on her, as did the snow around her feet move with every step she took. How odd. But Akko didn't care much for this development. She had more important things to do, like find Diana. There were no footsteps in the snow to tell Akko which way the two Diana's had gone.

So Akko did the only thing she could and that was to run after them in the last direction she had seen them take, which was straight. She pocketed her wand and did just that.

"Don't worry Diana," Akko huffed, legs churning as quickly as they could. Diana might be ignoring her, and Akko knew why. It had to do with Diana's sudden confession to Akko after the blonde had fallen and bumped her head in the woods. Akko had been confused by the confession. It had been so abrupt. And Akko never in her wildest dreams would have guessed Diana cared for like that.

But after the shock had gone away, Akko had felt like she was floating on cloud nine. Diana cared for her, and in that way! Akko didn't know why the revelation made her so happy but it did and she couldn't sleep that night. She wanted to talk to Diana more about it. However, when she'd tried to talk to Diana, the witch had avoided her attempts and this only continued. Now, Akko couldn't sleep well for another reason. She lost some of her cheer, her loss of friendship with Diana hurting her greatly. She'd mope around and her friends would get annoyed. So they had devised a plan to all attack Diana with magic and get her to stop and listen to what Akko had to say.

That hadn't gone at all well. It'd only forced Diana to end up in some weird mirror world. And now, it was time for Akko to save her.

"I'm going to find you," Akko vowed to the silent world around her.


	2. New Season's Greetings and Old Friend Meetings

* * *

Her name is Alice (Alice)/ She crawls into the window/ Shaped in shadows-

Shinedown, Alice

* * *

Akko ran for what felt like forever, breath pumping out of her lungs and legs tiring as the landscape around her remained unerringly white and unchanging. How far had she even gone? She could no longer see the mirror behind her, so she knew she'd gone some distance. Akko slowed down to take a break, hands on knees as she gulped in the cool air around her. Was she the only one in this world? No one else seemed to be here. She was getting worried.

Maybe Diana hadn't actually gone into the mirror. Maybe it was all some trick the stupid mirror played on Akko? It wouldn't have been the first time that something magical played with her mind.

Akko frowned. She knew she should have stopped being so impulsive. It's what got her in trouble all the time. It's what got her into situations like these. But, she wouldn't despair. There was always a way out.

"Alright, wherever you are Diana, stop playing games!" Akko called out to the snow around her.

"Did someone say games?" a voice broke in and Akko jumped. She turned to see who had spoken and saw a figure hunched over a singular chess board, contemplating the game even though they weren't playing against anyone. "Professor Holbrooke!" Akko exclaimed in shock. What was the headmistress doing here? And in white clothes with a crown on her head.

"How good to see you Alice dear," Holbrooke said, not once looking up from her board. "Have you come to finish our game? I haven't been able to move a piece ever since you left all those months ago."

A huge question mark rose over Akko's head. What was the headmistress talking about? "My name's not Alice. It's Akko."

"Same thing. You've come from the land of glass, as had Alice, which makes you the same. I do hope you haven't forgotten how to play," Holbrooke gestured to the table and Akko, not knowing what else to do, sat down. She looked down at the board and saw elaborate looking chess pieces running around chaotically. "They're moving!" she shouted out, not knowing why she was so shocked by this. She came from a world of magic, so this should have been normal.

"Of course they are moving. They are living. Is the land of glass really that boring that such things shock you?"

"I don't come from a land of glass. I come from Luna Nova! You should know that professor! You are the headmistress there!"

"I most certainly am not!" she sounded offended now. "I am the White King, and I rule the lands here. Now, are you playing or not?"

Akko shook her head. Something wasn't adding up here. Was this the real Holbrooke or was it some weird copy of her? After all, Diana had had a weird copy of herself take her into the mirror, so it was possible...

Akko stood up. "I don't have time for games. I have to find Diana. Do you know where Diana is?"

"I know about all of my residents here," Holbrooke scoffed. "What kind of king do you take me as? An ignorant one?"

"Then where is she?" Akko slapped the board in excitement, startling the living chess pieces who had been engaging in a poker game around a small fire they had made on the board. "Sorry," she said when they all shook their tiny fists at her.

"I can only tell you once we finish the game," Holbrooke stubbornly insisted and Akko grit her teeth in frustration.

"I don't have time to waste. I need to find Diana now."

"All in good time Alice."

"My name is not Alice!"

"You are, because are you not searching for Dinah?"

"Who?" Akko scratched her head.

"Your cat." Holbrooke was still rubbing her chin and looking down at the chaotic board.

"I don't have a cat. I'm looking for my friend, Diana! She's blonde and this tall," Akko indicated with her hand.

"Don't leave this game unfinished, Alice."

"I'm not Alice!" Akko cried out, losing her patience. "And I've never played chess with you."

"Yes you have. And as your king, I order you to do it. Unless you'd rather I'd get unpleasant," Holbrooke's voice left no room for discussion.

Akko gulped, too used to being scolded by Holbrooke to reject her request of playing chess for longer. She sat back down. "Which pieces are mine?"

"The black ones, of course. I always play white."

Akko gathered up her pieces, not sure quite how to move them, since they were living. She tried to force them back onto their spots but they kept moving and squirming around. "Ugh, can't you stay still!" she growled out at them. That prompted two of them to flip her off.

"A king always goes first," Holbrooke spoke and then moved her pawn two spaces down. Akko moved hers as well. They did a couple of rounds like this, Akko feeling like she was wasting time by doing this. She should be out there looking for Diana! And not playing chess with some weird version of her professor. And she was getting really annoyed, because these pieces wouldn't stay still. "Hey, pull your bishop back! He moved over and attacked my pawn on his own!"

"I can't control them. I can only put them on their square." Holbrooke shrugged, uncaring.

"Ugh, I can't deal with this!" Akko threw her hands up, ready to swipe all the pieces to the floor in frustration. "I should be looking for Diana and not playing games with you!"

"I can help you!" came a small voice from below and Akko picked up her knight. She stared at it's tiny features and her own widened in shock. "Andrew? Is that you?" Akko was already getting over the fact that this world seemed to be filled with copies of people she knew. Maybe they were like reflections of her friends, since this was a mirror world.

"Of course," he smiled. "And I'm here to help you. I know where she is."

"Oh thank you!" Akko felt so relieved. Finally, someone would tell her something useful. She got up from the board. "Where do I go?"

"Keep forwards onto the path you were going on before. You're getting closer."

"Where are you going?" Holbrooke demanded, but she made no move to get up, still looking down at the board.

"I'm leaving. I have things to do." Akko couldn't be rude to Holbrooke, even though it wasn't really her.

"Very well. Good game. Come finish it some other day. I'll be waiting here."

Akko was pleased to see that Holbrooke would just let her leave like that. Before it had seemed like she would have punished Akko for refusing the game. Akko went out into the woods, placing Andrew on her shoulder. Steadily the white king and his chess table disappeared behind her. It came to her attention soon that there was some sort of music playing. It was an odd tune, off beat and jaunty, stopping and starting erratically.

It almost hurt to listen to it.

"What is that horrid noise?" Akko placed her hands over her ears.

"It must be the Hatta and the Hare," Andrew answered, pointing in the direction of a small path off to the side that Akko hadn't noticed before. "Go that way."

"Will it take me to Diana?"

"It will take you somewhere, and that is better than nowhere."

"That's not helping me at all, Andrew," Akko scowled down at the tiny man on her shoulder.

"I can only take you to places I know. To look for. The rest of the discoveries must be yours. You must find Dinah of your own intent."

"I do intend to find her. Is my resolve lacking?" Akko was perplexed by that comment. Did Andrew think that Akko didn't want to find Diana because they were currently fighting? "And her name is not Dinah. Why does everyone think I'm looking for some sort of cat?"

Andrew said nothing to that because they had finally arrived into a meadow of sorts. In the middle of the snowy field was a table and at it, two occupants. "Amanda? Jasminka?" So they were here too? Amanda was holding up a bow string in one hand and sawing at a teapot with it. Jasminka was banging on the dishes and tea cups with some forks. And for some reason this was able to conjure up the sound of violins, guitars, pianos and drums.

"Look who it is," Amanda commented, stopping her motions. Jasminka did too and the horrible music stopped for once. "Took you a while to find us."

"Are you the Amanda from the real world?" Akko asked.

"Amanda? Who is she? I'm the Hatta. I used to be called the Mad Hatter but then Diana came to my world and changed some things so I no longer have anything to be mad about. Instead, now I can be glad. Should I call myself the Glad Hatter, perhaps?" Amanda turned to Jasminka to ask this. The girl merely shoved a cookie into her mouth. "Hmm, you're right. I should think more about it." Then she turned to Akko. "And this is the Hare. She used to be called the March Hare, but it's no longer March. Time has run again and now it's December. Hmm, December Hare for you then?" She turned to Jasminka once more only for the bigger girl to chug down some hot steaming tea with a deadpan expression. "Yes, I suppose the name is a bit too cold. You are more merry than that."

"Hatta, do you know Diana then? Did she come this way?" Akko was getting hopeful. Maybe Andrew had led her on the right path after all.

"Oh no, I haven't seen her since she awoke, but I did see a cat come through this way."

Akko had no idea what the Hatta could mean by not seeing Diana once she awoke. Had Diana met these characters somewhere in the past? And what the heck was going on with everyone talking about cats? She supposed that was as best a hint she would get. Maybe they thought Diana was a cat? Just like they thought Akko was some girl named Alice. "Where did the cat go?"

"Now," Amanda chuffed. "Where is the fun in that? Easy answers does not a good adventure make. And you want to do this on your own." She mixed in some butter into her tea and chugged it.

"Oh come on!" Why was everyone so annoying here. "Why do you have to make this hard for me? You think I won't succeed? That's where you're wrong! I'll overcome any short coming you give me, like I always do." Akko was feeling fired up. They were all mocking her. They didn't think she could find Diana and save her. "I'll do it without your help if I have to."

Hatta said nothing as Akko marched away, head held up high. She passed the table by and followed some random path that could lead her out of here.

"Do not get angry, Akko. For we have to test your mettle," Andrew said.

"Are you on their side?" Akko angrily turned to Andrew who shook his head. "I'm on your side. But I can't help you if you aren't honest. Why are you trying to save your friend?"

"Because she's my friend."

"Is that the only reason why?"

"Well...we kind of had a fight. And we didn't get to talk things out and I want to talk to her about those things that went unsaid...or said," Akko flushed at Diana's words of confession.  _I love you Akko._  What had Diana been dreaming about? Had she been dreaming about Akko?

"What did she say?"

Akko flushed a little darker. "She s-said she liked me. And now she's too embarrassed to talk to me. But I want to tell her-!" Akko cut herself off. Yes, just what exactly did she want to say?

"What do you want to say to her?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't thought through my words yet. But when I do, I'll tell her everything," Akko fist pumped.

She didn't have to walk far before a giant castle arose on the horizon. It was covered in hearts and snow, making for a depressing looking place. "Who lives there?"

"The Queen of Hearts."

"I wonder if she will have answers for me. Maybe she'll know where Diana is."

They walked right through the ramparts. There were playing cards standing guard at the front, but both of them were slumped over, snoring. "Cool!" Akko was tempted to touch one to see if they were real but Andrew hissed at her a 'no' and they moved on through a garden of red roses covered in splotches of white paint. Akko wondered what that was all about. Eventually they made it into the castle and Akko followed some loud noises into the Queen's throne room. She was in the middle of a heated argument between another queen. "Is that Croix?" Akko let out a small gasp as she watched her favorite teacher turned nemesis wave her hands in exaggerated and aggravated movements. She was decked out in a red cape over black leather jeans and corset. And next to her was Finnelan, dressed in all white clothing covered by a long white cape. Finnelan looked displeased by Croix's yelling but did not do much in response to it.

As Akko got closer she could make out some words "-and it will be off with your head if you don't stop bothering me! Off with your whole kingdom's head, White Queen!"

"I merely wanted to speak to you on getting help. This monster is ravishing both of our lands. We need to stop it."

"This is not any of my concern!" Croix's voice was shrill.

"It's your monster!" Finnelan stressed. "You made it, then it went wild, and now it's hurting the both of our lands."

"Off with your head for that accusation!" Croix crossed her arms over her chest and turned up her nose.

"If you won't stop being this childish behavior than I will be forced to make this winter over your lands eternal." Finnelan raised a stern finger.

"You wouldn't dare! I'll cut the head off of winter and-"

"Excuse me!" Akko called out sharply and this paused the two queens in their bitter entanglement. "I need help finding one of my friends. Have you seen her perchance?"

"And who is she, to be butting in?" Finnelan looked on in disgust at Akko.

Croix, however, smiled. "She is the one who will take care of our issue for us. Alice has come to kill the Jabberwocky."

Akko stood there dumbly before her eyes widened. "Eh?"

"So there is no longer any need for you to be here," Croix waved a dismissive hand at the White Queen.

Finnelan shot Akko a disproving look. "She looks too scrawny to be much of a help. The Jabberwocky will eat her up as a snack." Then, she turned on her heel and left.

"Amazing timing, darling. I was thinking you would never come. And I see you've returned my knave to me."

"Ehhhhh?"

Andrew hopped off of Akko's shoulder and into Croix's waiting hand. "He is smaller than I recall, but he shall still serve me well."

"Oh course my queen. I have learned from my mistakes and I shall always be loyal to you. I will be your dedicated knave of hearts once more."

He bowed to her on one knee, before rising and saying his goodbyes to Akko. "I can no longer come with you on your quest. From here on out, it is all on your shoulders."

"Ehhhhhhhhh?"

"Now, begone. Do not keep me waiting. As we speak the Jabberwocky is probably devouring whole towns and villages. But you've already killed him before, so you must do it again. Just find the Vorpal blade." Croix pushed Akko rudely out the door with one hand and the brunette found herself back in the garden of white roses.

"EHHHHHHHHHH?" she screeched out. "What the heck is a Jabberwocky? And what is a Vorpal sword?!" She kicked a bush in frustration. How was she expected to destroy a dangerous sounding monster with a weapon she didn't have! All she wanted to find was Diana! And Andrew had abandoned her too, leaving her to be on her own in this strange land. She gave the bush one more kick of frustration.

"Nyah? Who keeps kicking my bush? I'm trying to sleep under it." A soft sleep filled voice spoke up and a person pulled themselves up from under the bush. It was-

"Diana!" Akko hugged the girl tightly to her, happy to see her after all this time. "I was worried about you! I thought I would never find you!"

"Diana?" the girl yawned, rubbing her eyes and pulling away. "I'm not Diana. My name is Snowball."

"Snowball?" Oh no, had the craziness gotten to Diana as well? Akko gave the girl a once over and saw something strange indeed. On her head were two pairs of white cat ears, and behind her flicked a white tail. Akko had to take a deep breath to stop her brain from cuteness overload. Diana was a cat? So maybe those crazy folks had been right all along. "Are you sure you're not Diana?"

Snowball shook her head. "I've never heard of that name before. But I am glad to see you." She flashed Akko a shy smile, a blush forming on her cheeks. "I thought you'd left me and that you didn't want to be by my side anymore."

"Huh! I would never leave you. We're good friends. Really good friends."

Snowball's ears drooped a little at this. "Only friends? After all we've been through?"

"Do you not want to be friends?" Akko was confused now.

Snowball shook her head and pulled Akko into a tight hug this time, purring loudly. "I'm happy even if we're only friends. I'm happy as long as I'm by your side." She nuzzled her face into Akko's neck, making Akko giggle.

"Good. You've got to help me out then."

"Anything for you Akko," Snowball said so earnestly that Akko couldn't quite look into her eyes.

"Right." She ruffled the back of her head, turning away from the intense gaze. "First, we find Diana." Though Akko wasn't sure that Snowball wasn't the real Diana. Maybe she just didn't remember it? Or she really was fake, just like all the other people Akko had seen. And where was that weird discolored Diana from before. Was she here too? Was she holding the real Diana captive?

"No," Snowball shook her head. "First we go to the Walrus and Carpenter."

"Who?"

But Snowball said nothing, striding ahead into the snowy woods, and tugging Akko behind her by the hand.


	3. In Search of Destiny

* * *

_Like Alice through the Looking Glass/To the other side of the mirror I'm going back/Become a deadly weapon now along with everything else_

_Stevie Nicks, Alice_

* * *

 

Snowball had said she would lead the way to where Akko needed to go next, but she had been leading the way for quite some time now and Akko feared they would never arrive at this place. Her patience was running out as her worry for her friend increased.

"Snowball," Akko called out. "How much longer?"

"Not much farther. Just five more minutes," Snowball looked back and smiled warmly in reassurance.

"You said that five minutes ago. And the other five minutes ago. And the last five. And the last five before that. When are we going to get to the Walrus and Carpenter?" Akko complained. She had no idea why they were heading out to such characters but this person leading her was Diana in some form and so she trusted her naturally to know what to do. Or at least she had in the beginning. Now she wasn't too sure. Snowball seemed a bit air headed. and coming from a regular air head like Akko that assessment meant something.

"It's a long journey," Snowball said as way of explanation. "But in the meantime we can talk. Why don't you tell me about why you're looking for this Dinah character?"

"Her name is Diana," Akko corrected and rubbed the back of her head with her free hand. Snowball hadn't let go of Akko's hand in all this time they had been walking and Akko wondered why. It felt nice, though, so she wasn't going to complain. "And I'm looking for her because-"

"Because she told you she loved you?" Snowball filled in with a knowing tilt of her head.

"Uh, no, yea, maybe? How do you know that?" Akko stammered through her response, feeling flustered at hearing once more how Diana had confessed to her. Because Akko knew it be a confession but why it had happened, Akko had no clue and Diana had not offered any.

"I know a great many things about Dinah. She's very close to my heart after all," Snowball answered, touching her chest where her heart was. "But unfortunately she's missing."

"Do you know where she is?" Akko asked hopefully.

"I do not know," Snowball shook her head and her ears flattened at the sad thought. "But the path to her will become revealed in time as long as you follow the instructions given to you."

"What instructions?"

"To find the Vorpal sword and slay the Jabberwocky. When adventuring, things have a tendency to arise that naturally would not have," Snowball assured. "That is why we are on the way to those who can help us find what we are looking for. But it is so romantic that you are seeking for your love," Snowball gushed, blushing. "Ah, young love. She had declared her love for you before she was tragically spirited away and now it's your turn to rescue her."

"It didn't quite go like that," Akko said, flushing as she recalled Diana's words. Those words had confused Akko at first before elating her. But then they had proved to be cause for much melancholy for her because Diana refused to see her after she had uttered those three magic words. "Diana told me she loved me and then ran off without letting me talk to her about it."

"Oh, that's horrid!" Snowball gasped and pulled the two of them to a stop. "I would never do that to you Akko. You are too lovely to be rude to. I would shower you with all my love if you gave me the chance." Here she cupped Akko's cheeks and looked on at her with such unabashed love that Akko squirmed, her heart beat accelerating. Why was Snowball like this? Why was she so...flirty with Akko? Akko didn't know how to deal with such things.

As they stood like that, Snowball began to lean in closer and Akko, her body not at all ready for such a huge leap, backed away, slipping free from Snowball's hold before what she guessed would be a kiss happened between them. "Uh, thanks for the sentiments," she quickly got out, averting her gaze from Snowball's, "but uh, I think I saw someone over there." And she pointed to the snow covered bushes were nothing definitely had been.

Snowball sighed out in disappointment, knowing Akko was bluffing. "Oh dear, it seems you haven't opened up your mind entirely."

"My mind?"

Snowball nodded her head sagely. "Until you do you will not be able to see the path on which your friend walks. It seems I have a lot of work to do with you." Snowball patted a snow free bench that had suddenly appeared by her side. "Come, sit down, and tell me all about your friend."

Akko was confused as to what Snowball wanted from her. "Shouldn't we be looking for the sword? People are getting attacked by the Jabberwocky and there is no telling who could be in danger!" Akko had blanched at facing such a monster in this realm but her noble heart would not allow her to back down from this quest and let others get hurt.

"They will be fine, but you will not be if you do not figure out both reflections of you." Snowball was insistent.

"What do you mean by that?" Snowball was speaking plainly but yet in riddles at the same time. She tentatively moved to Snowball, waffling between just telling the cat girl to let them move ahead when suddenly voices became apparent to the both of them. Snowball heard them first, her cat ears pricking up. Her face whitened at this and she rose to her feet hastily. "Oh no," she gasped out and Akko twisted her head around before she heard the echoing voices nearing them from behind a patch of trees.

"What? What's going on now?"

"Our common enemies, denial and nonacceptance are approaching. We must make haste." Snowball reached for Akko's hand but it was too late. They were spotted before they even took two steps forward. Akko didn't know who to expect next but she certainly didn't expect these two faces. Around the bend came Hannah and Barbara.

"What do we have here?" Hannah asked, clicking her tongue.

"Our two girls of the hour," Barbara added. The both of them were wearing matching outfits and weirdly concluding each other's sentences.

"Tweedledum and Tweedledee, leave us alone!" Snowball cried out. "Whatever you have been told, it is wrong. Things need to progress. They must change for both. I know Kitty sent you, but do not listen to her."

"Wrong. She did not send us."

"I think you know who did," Barbara leered dreadfully, the two of them ever getting closer, closing the space between the two opposing parties.

"Then what I feared to be true is true," Snowball fretted.

Akko whipped her head between the three of them, trying to follow this conversation. As usual, she had no clue as to what was going on. What was true? And who was Kitty? "Snowball?" she questioned.

"We must run," Snowball informed grimly and the two took to their heel as Hannah and Barbara raced after them. The air burned in Akko's lungs as she raced on, her legs aching. It was hard to run on snow, the material slippery. But Snowball's hand in hers gave her strength to continue on.

"You cannot run from us," Hannah taunted.

"You must face us to get rid of us."

"We have to fight them?" Akko inquired, not daring to look back to see how close they were. They sounded close.

"We should, but we cannot do that yet when we have more important issues to face right now."

Snowball lead them through the woods, making them go off the beaten path until they came to a small stream. They lept over it easily and once they did Snowball pulled them to a stop there. Chest heaving, Akko tried to catch her breath and speak. "Why did we stop?"

Hannah and Barbara stopped in front of the stream, unable to hop over it for some reason. "They've changed tactics, I see. Smart play, for now," Hannah groused out.

Barbara crossed her arms over her chest as she scowled. "Come, we must report to our side that we cannot continue our pursuit because the square is not ours." And then the two of them walked away, casting nasty glances at Akko and Snowball as they did so.

"How come they couldn't follow us over?" Akko asked as Snowball began to walk away.

"Be happy they could not," was the unsatisfying response. "Let us make haste. We are almost to our destination and I would hate to see any harm come to you before you get there." Snowball smiled so gently at Akko that it made Akko flush again. The brunette had wondered how Diana looking that softly at her would feel like and right now it felt like cloud nine, even if it wasn't her Diana. Her Diana would likely never look at her like that ever.

She shook the depressing thought from her head and went on. Now wasn't the time for dwelling on past memories but on finding Diana.

As they delved deeper into the woods, they came across a frost covered wall with a large tan egg balancing on top of it. "Wow, you know how many people that egg could feed!" Akko said in astonishment, thinking with her stomach.

"I am not for anyone to eat!" the egg suddenly shrilled out as a nose, two baby blues eyes, and a mouth popped out of it.

"Eh!" Akko shouted in shock and almost slipped on the snow in her haste to get back from it. A talking egg? She would never be able to look at her eggs the same way.

"How rude," it sniffed. "Young ones these days have no regards for their elders."

"Um, I'm sorry?" Akko offered uncertainly.

He swiftly ignored her with a haughty chin raise and crossed thin arms that had appeared out of his chest as well as crossed his legs. "I've never seen you this far here, Snowball. Is it a new game?"

"It is indeed. We have been challenged and we cannot back down."

He gave a look over. "Be wary for only Queens can get to the end goal and the both of you are not queens yet."

"We will keep that in mind, Humpty."

Humpty? Wait, like Humpty Dumpty? What was an old nursery rhyme character doing here? "You're that egg from the story that falls over and breaks!" Akko pointed at him in a moment of excitement and enlightenment.

"I must certainly do not," he sniffed. He jumped up and struck a dramatic pose on top of the thin wall. "I am smarter than your average egg. I was hatched from a hen of brilliance and as thus-" he cut himself off as his eyes opened wide. "The horsemen!" he screamed out and in his shock, he lost his senses of balance. Akko watched in horror as his arms windmilled and he teetered precariously before he fell face down and cracked open, the yellow yolk dribbling out. Akko felt this moment could not be more ironic than if she had conjured it by magic. Talk about a self fulfilling prophecy.

"Is-is he dead?" Akko gasped out but Snowball wasn't paying Humpty's body any mind.

"The King's horsemen are coming!" she exclaimed, looking worried.

"Should we run?" Akko asked, ready to go already.

Snowball shook her head sadly. "It is not our turn. We must wait."

Whatever did that mean? But Akko trusted Snowball because they were both on the same side, even if Snowball made no sense sometimes.

And so they did wait as the thunder of hoof beats got louder until three horsemen arrived. The horses breath clouded in the air as they pulled to a stop. The men riding them were cards with human heads and legs and arms. "You two," declared the leader in a mighty voice. "You are hereby wanted for the murder of Humpty Dumpty!"

"What?!" Akko exclaimed, not expecting to get blamed for an accident. "But- but he fell on his own!"

The leader did not listen, unfurling his long scroll. "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a big fall. All the kings horses and all the kings men could not put Humpty Dumpty together again." He rolled it up. "This is a note you left us denoting the crime you would commit and we came swiftly to deliver justice for that fine egg."

"But-but!" Akko sputtered, completely at a loss as she extended her hands in helpless gestures in front of herself. She turned to Snowball whose head was hanging down in defeat and who had chains already around her hands. "Snowball?"

"Do as the men say, we've been captured." And at those words Akko felt a heavy weight on her wrists where a pair of brand new manacles were resting. "Eh?! What is going on?" she wondered not for the last time.

One of the horse men, a number three, slid down his horse to grab her upper arms. "Don't struggle, it'll only make things harder," he informed her as he pulled her to his horse. She did not listen of course and kicked and screamed but he had the strength of what seemed like three men and he tossed her up easily like a sack of potatoes. Then he joined her.

Snowball calmly sat on the other horseman's steed. Akko cast her a wordless look, looking for guidance, but Snowball only shook her head sadly.

They rode to their destination in silence. On the horses travel was decidedly faster and soon an all too familiar red castle decorated with hearts came into view. "The Queen of Hearts castle?" Akko pondered to herself. Hadn't the queen been on her side? Hadn't she been the one in the first place who had insisted on sending Akko off on that vapid quest?

They were dismounted and roughly led into a giant courtroom that was empty save for a sleeping figure in the judge's seat.

"Red King, we have brought the accused to stand before you," announced the leader of the pack of cards.

There was a snort from the slumbering mass as they rose. It was professor Lukic, rubbing sleep from her eyes. "Professor?" Akko breathed out. What were all her professors doing here? Was Ursula here too? Who knew.

"And what did they do?" Lukic yawned, head already dropping back into sleep.

"They killed Humpty Dumpty."

"We did not!" Akko interjected angrily. She would not stand to be blamed for something she did not do! "Snowball, tell them the truth. That Humpty was your friend and we would never do him any harm!"

But Snowball was quiet, eyes fixed on the floor. Why was she behaving this way?

"We found them right next to the body. And they left a note for us-"

"That's not a note but a nursery rhyme! Everyone's heard of it!" Akko snapped out.

"Ah, so you boasted of your crime to everyone?" the leader sneered righteously and like Akko had sealed her own fate with that assertion.

"No, I didn't! That's not what I meant!"

"Then we bring forth our witness and victim, Humpty Dumpty himself!" announced the number three card grandly. The doors on the side of the room opened up and Humpty Dumpty staggered into the room, using a cane to walk. He had a huge plaster on where his head had cracked.

"See, he's alive!" Akko indicated to him.

"Silence, you will let him sleep. I mean, speak," Red King lazily banged the gravel for order in the court.

"I was sitting on the wall, minding my own business, when that young rascal there came up to me and said she wondered how it would be to eat me!" he screamed in accusation.

"It was just an innocent question. I didn't know you were alive!" Akko defended.

"And then she proceeded to tell me I would fall off the wall."

"And did you?" Lukic lethargically asked.

"I did."

"Your highest honor, it is just like the note proclaims! She is guilty!" the card leader shoved a finger at Akko's face, almost poking her eye out.

"Should we throw them in the dungeons? Or send them to their beheading?" asked the card holding Snowball.

Akko paled at hearing that. Neither sounded good.

"Let them fall off a wall!" Humpty Dumpty demanded, shaking his fist.

"You are one bad egg!" Akko shouted at him. How could he turn so easily against them? Against Snowball, his friend?

Lukic the Red King yawned once more, eyes closing already. "I'm sure this is just a bad dream. So do be rid of them my brave cards. Send them away so that I may get my rest."

"Certainly," the three of them bowed and lead Snowball and Akko out of the castle, undoing their chains.

Akko was utterly confused. So...that trial had been for nothing? That capture for nothing? They were...just free?

"Why are you letting us go?" Akko asked, happy to be free but wanting some sort of answer to make sense of her life right now.

"You are lucky the king is too tired to carry out court or else you would have been in big trouble," the leader said before he turned on his heel and all the cards left them. Akko turned to Snowball with wide astonished eyes. "Did we really just get sent free?"

Snowball beamed at her. "You will never be free of my love, Akko."

Akko flushed at that. "Huh?"

"You were so brave, arguing and standing up for our cause," Snowball neared, making the two of them stand too close to each other. Akko was getting emotional whiplash from just fearing for her life to now being...seduced?

"But sadly, you are not mine to have," Snowball sighed out. "Come, it is our turn again." She sniffed the air to find their trail and then took several steps in a peculiar manner. When Akko tried to walk straight, she found she could not. "Uh, Snowball, why can I not walk normally?"

"Because we can no longer advance forwards. We must move diagonally only," Snowball informed all knowingly. "For if we do not then we will lose our way. Thankfully our sojourn against the king reinvented us. We are closer to having the qualifications to finish the quest."

"Okay..." Akko sighed out, giving up on trying to understand this whole situation. Instead she followed Snowball to her next misadventure


	4. What Lays Slain

I'll survive  
When the world's crashing down  
When I fall and hit the ground  
I will turn myself around  
Don't you try to stop me  
I, I won't cry-

_Alice, Avril Lavinge_

* * *

Akko should have known things wouldn't be that easy. That just because they had escaped the Red King's judgement that they would be able to proceed without anymore trouble. Enemies of progress were after them again.

"How did they find us so quickly?" Snowball mussed as they sank into snow knee high in an effort to outrace them.

"Maybe they have some way to track us?" Akko suggested because she was getting tired of obsticles preventing her from reaching her goal. Why, when she needed to achieve something, it was so hard to do so?

A sudden look of realization crossed over Snowball's face and her tail lashed behind her. "We need to separate ways."

"Why?" Akko was loathe to split up from the only friend she had here.

"Because Kitty can see how we advance."

"How?"

"Our eyes gaze upon the same land, and our brains formulate a connection. If I leave then you might have an easier time proceeding given you have no clue as to where to go."

"If I don't know where to go, how does that help me?"

"Being clueless works in your advantage for now," Snowball assured. "I will switch my path and you continue upon the direction you were going. The people we seek are close by. I can smell the salt on the air."

"Snowball. Alice. Give yourselves up!" Hannah and Barbara yelled after them, their red matching outfits standing out on the snow.

"I bet you cannot outmatch me," Snowball shouted at them, cupping her hands around her mouth so they could hear better. Then she murmured to Akko, "go. I will find you later. And remember, look deep into your heart. It is what will help you unlock the key to truly defeating the real enemy here." Snowball placed a hand over Akko's chest before she rushed off diagonally from Akko.

Akko watched her go and in how Hannah and Barbara chased after her. Sighing, for it seemed she had no choice in the matter, Akko continued upon her trajectory. With each step she got closer and closer to the splashing of waves. She could smell the salt in the air now. The snow got less and less deep and Akko shook out her legs to get rid of the excess snow clinging onto her. She paused on the lip of a cliff and saw dark gray waves, with a small blip on the horizon. Where did she go from here? There was no one on the shore but a boat. A boat with a sheep inside.

She trod down to the sand, hands on her hips. Perhaps the sheep could tell her the answer? After all, if eggs could talk so could animals, right?

"Hey, mister, or er, miss, sheep. Do you know what I should do now? I was told to come here by Snowball to find the Walrus and the carpenter but no one seems to be here."

The sheep merely chewed on some hay in it's mouth.

Akko waited a beat before trying again. "I don't mean to disrupt you but I could really use the help."

This time the sheep let out a bleat.

"Whelp," Akko rocked back and forth on her heels unproductively. "I guess you're just a sheep. Great." Now what was Akko to do?

Maybe she had to take the boat to the island on the horizon?

Shrugging for she didn't know what else to do, she made shooing motions at the sheep. "I kinda need to use the boat. If you wouldn't mind getting out so I could use it."

The sheep did not move, only blinked at Akko as it chewed on it's hay.

"I guess you're coming with me then, sheep," Akko said as she pushed the boat. It was heavy, no thanks to the added weight of the sheep inside. When it hit the water, Akko jumped in and using the oars began to navigate the dirty waters. The sheep stared at her the whole time, still chewing on that same strand of hay. Just watching the sheep chew rhythmically made Akko sleepy for some reason. It made her want to just put the oars down and just...just float in the ocean with this sheep. She had the strangest urge to do nothing.

She shook her head when she realized she was drooling by looking at the sheep. "Stop that," she chided herself, slapping her face to awaken her and to motivate her. But it was hard going, her mind wanting to slip into a haze every couple of seconds. In the end, she decided to sit with her back to the sheep and row in this manner. She couldn't see the island this way but it was easier, because she no longer felt like giving up. The sheep was having an odd effect on her but Akko didn't dwell on it, just focused on rowing until she felt the boat shudder to a stop. She had hit land.

She jumped out of the boat, wagging a finger at the sheep. "Stay here," she warned and then marched forwards. The island was small and bare, made of rocks and sand. On it, lay a giant Walrus, conversing to a carpenter. "Professor Pisces? And Badcock?" Akko questioned as she recognized their faces. The walrus, Pisces, turned around and began making walrus noises at her. Akko wished she had paid more attention to her aquatic language lessons. They would have been useful now.

"Greetings Alice," Badcock translated as she stirred her cauldron and dropped various materials into it. In went wood, rocks, glass and dirt. Badcock was acting more like a witch than a carpenter. But Akko didn't feel any need to debate this with her professor as long as she could provide answers or help.

"I'm not Alice," Akko pointed out, getting tired of pointing this out to everyone here. "I'm Akko. And I'm here for the Vorpal Sword. Do you know where I can find it?"

"Well, we don't have it," Badcock translated for Pisces clapping her flippers together.

Akko deflated. "So I came here all the way for no reason? I let Snowball act as decoy for no reason?"

"There is reason, you just didn't reason enough to think hard enough about where the sword could be," Badcock tapped her temple all knowingly.

"And what does that mean?!" Akko was seriously about to implode from how frustrating every character here was. How was she to do anything if she had no clue on what to do?

"I'm surprised you even made it to this island. Not many get past the sheep. They give up halfway here."

Akko didn't want them going off on a tangent on something else so she forcefully redirected them. "Listen, I'm not done talking about the sword. Where is it?"

Badock and Pisces shared a look as if Akko was the biggest dunce alive. "How much clearer do we have to be? If we get any clearer we won't exist anymore."

"Yes, you need to be clear with me!" Akko exclaimed frantically and with no patience. "Because I'm not from this world and I'd really like to leave it but I can't if I have no clue as to how! Now, where is the sword!"

"Is a witch's best weapon not her wand?"

The suggestion hung in the air and it took Akko a few seconds to garner the meaning behind it before she dug into her pocket and by some miracle or some magic, was able to pull out a sharp polished blade from inside.

"Holy crude!" she shouted out, glancing at the way the light reflected over the sharpest sword ever known to man that had been just comfortably resting in her pocket. "How did this fit in there?" she peered into her pocket, trying to figure out how the dimensions could work.

"Don't ponder over that. You have a beast to slaughter and a world to save," Badcock insisted.

"Wait, before I go- I'm also looking for Diana. Do you know where she is?"

"Part of you already found her. This part of you just hasn't caught up to the fact of it."

"What do you mean part of me found her?" Akko furrowed her brow. Why couldn't anyone ever tell her anything straight up?

But before more could be said, shouts came from behind Akko. When she turned around she saw that a bunch of white knights had arrived this time on their white steeds. "Get her!" they shouted out as they charged at her.

"Why is everyone after me?" Akko grumbled out, holding out her sword in front of her, hoping it would magically rise up and knock them over their heads and save her. Because she had no clue on how to sword fight.

"Professors, can you help me?" Akko called out to them but where they had once been was only sand and rock. They had disappeared without a sound or a trace. "Thanks for the help," she muttered sarcastically as the knights began to circle around her, steeds kicking up dust as they surrounded her, tightening the circle. Her heart beat in her chest like a war hammer. What did she do? Her hands shook on her sword as she bravely held it out.

"Hee-yah!" a loud cry came from above and a shadow blocked out some of Akko's light as something jumped over the circle of knights and landed next to her with a loud thud. It was Andrew, normal sized again and wielding a sword.

"Andrew!" Akko cheered hopefully. Maybe not all was lost!

"I've come to save you," he announced grandly as he slid off his horse. "Take my steed and race off to save Snowball. She is in trouble as are the others."

"Why don't you come with me?" Akko asked as he helped her onto his horse. Not knowing what to do with her sword she tentatively tucked her sword back into her pocket and watched as it casually went in. She kept expecting it to stab her but it didn't.

"I cannot. I must fight them for you." He brandished his sword as the knights continued to race around them. They pulled out their own swords in preparation and began howling and yelling to strike fear into his heart but it did not work for he was too brave.

"But you could get hurt-" Akko protested. She did not know if this was some alternative version of Andrew or if he had gotten stuck here somehow but she did not want to leave him behind to perish.

"I will not. The special bond between you and Dinah prevents me from dying for I swore to make the two of you reconcile." He nodded his head. "Go." And he slapped his horse's flank. The horse reared up and all Akko could do was hold on for dear life as it jumped over the white knights easily. The horse raced through the ocean water, the water only going up to it's knees. Akko had never ridden a horse before and so she bounced around awkwardly on him until they reached the snow covered shore and made way quickly through the woods all the way to a giant clearing. Akko ducked branches and brambles that tried to snag at her and when the horse reared to a stop she almost fell off of it, only staying on because she had grabbed onto it's mane with panicked hands.

It stood in place, snorting heavily and Akko rightened herself up, her eyes growing wide. The horse had lead her straight to the beast she was supposed to slay. It's body was long and thin and it had wrapped itself around a giant rock pile it called home. it seemed to be a mix of all sorts of animals, with a dog head filled with crocodile teeth, antlers of deer on top of it's forehead, long whiskers like a catfish drooping down from it's lips. It had legs of an elephant. it's body was dragon like, covered in scales and with bird wings of giant feathers and spotted in black and brown patterns. A spiny tail flickered behind it with fish fins tapering it off.

Akko gulped as her eyes grew as wide as saucers. She had thought she was supposed to go save her friends, and not face this monster. In no way was she ready for it.

The Jabberwocky raised its head, scenting her and yawning almost lazily as it awoke.

"I see you have arrived," boomed a voice from above and Akko looked at the rock on which two figures now stood. Both people that Akko recognized. One was Snowball, mouth frowning in fear and arms tied behind her back while the other figure held her up. Her long black tail swished behind her and her black ears flicked triumphantly. They were both Diana- but clearly one of them was not a friend.

"And who are you?" Akko asked, even as her eyes kept flickering back to the Jabberwocky which was slowly pulling itself awake.

"I am Kitty. I am Dinah's other half. This is my twin Snowball who has been so rude as to keep helping you, even when we don't want help!" Kitty snarled, and Akko recognized her as the negative copy of Diana that had first stolen her through the mirror.

"Akko, don't listen to her! She's not good! She only aims to hurt Dinah! I only want to make her whole once more," Snowball cried out.

Kitty roughly shook her to fix her thought process. "Dinah doesn't want to be back together. It only caused her pain. Pain of embarrassment and rejection!"

Akko had no idea what the two were arguing about- all she knew was, "Whatever has hurt Diana, I am here to make the pain go away. I am here to save her!"

"You hear that Kitty. Akko cares for Dinah and she wants to get her back." Snowball told her twin.

Kitty was not convinced by that. "Lies! All lies! She does not care for her the way we want her to!"

"But I think she does," Snowball answered softly. "She just isn't aware of it."

That seemed to calm Kitty down a bit. "Do you really think so?" Kitty asked, hope forming in her eyes.

"I know so." Snowball affirmed confidently and with a warm smile on her lips. "That is why we should combine our efforts in order to make Akko see the truth. And to get her to help us."

Kitty seemed to almost waver here and Akko was silently urging Snowball on, urging her to win Kitty over to their side and quick before the Jabberwocky awoke. The monster was humongous, and scarier looking than anything Akko's had to brave before.

"Pathetic," a low voice growled out behind Akko and she turned her horse to see who it was. She gasped out loud, almost choking on her shock. It was her, but another version of herself. With white hair, glowing green eyes and wearing all black armor. She rode up on her black steed until she stood not too far from Akko. "Are you really going to give in that easily, Kitty? I thought we were here to protect Dinah's heart and not endanger it more. Snowball is vapid, do not listen to her delusions or her dreams. I am part of Akko, and I know her feelings are not true."

"Hey, stop lying!" Akko shouted out, getting frustrated by this back and forth and by the false declarations being cast into the air. "I care for Diana and you can't convince me otherwise. I'm here after all to save her! And who even are you?"

"Isn't that obvious? I'm you. And I'm the one who orchestrated this whole event. I caused Diana to disappear, I sent the Tweedle's on you, and I freed the Jabberwocky so that it could eat all my problems away."

At this a shadow hung over Akko and she shivered. She had left her back unprotected and she turned around she saw that the Jabberwocky had finally fully awoken and it was towering over her, smoke curling out of it's flaring nostrils.

"Goodbye, Akko," her evil twin said and then the dragon lunged.


	5. The Jabberwocky

* * *

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!  
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!"

-Lewis Carroll, Jabberwocky and other Poems-

* * *

"I am so not ready for this!" Akko cried out as the Jabberwocky chased her. Her poor horse gave all it could, but it could not outrun a monster for long. Flames erupted from the monster's mouth and singed the horse's rump. This caused the horse to rear back and to drop Akko onto her butt painfully before it raced away and left her there in the dust.

"Seriously?" she yelled at it's back, shaking a fist before she froze as she felt a powerful snort behind her, inhaling her scent. She had no doubt as to who it could be. The Jabberwocky. She jumped to her feet, turning to face it, sword extended in front of her. The monster snarled loudly in her face, bathing her in hot air. Her knees knocked together from fright. "I can do this," she repeated to herself. "I can stop this beast."

But looking into it's yellow menacing eyes that reflected a small girl with fright on her face, she wasn't so sure. How was she going to save Diana? How was to save this world? She didn't understand any of the rules here. And she had no one to help her.

To add insult to injury, the beast guffawed at her pitiful attempts.

As did the evil Akko behind her. "Give up now, Akko, and I may spare your life."

"Never!" Akko cried out, sounding more brave than she actually felt.

"Really?" mocked evil Akko. "You would sacrifice your life for someone you don't even care about?"

"No, I do care for Diana. I do!" Akko said and suddenly, almost impossibly given the random moment of it, things became clearer to her. Diana had to have strong feelings for her. But she also had to be conflicted and that was what caused Snowdrop and Kitty. If she could get the two to reconcile. To work out their differences...and clearly her evil side was also a part of her. Part of something she had a hard time accepting.

She turned her back on the Jabberwocky, though it took every last ounce of her bravery to do that.

How could she not have seen this after all, when it was so simple and glaring of a fact to see now. The Jabberwocky, no matter it's might, wasn't the beast to defeat here. It was Akko who had to fight herself. She strode towards her darker version who still sat on her horse. The dragon behind her watched her do it, confused by this sudden course of action.

"What are you doing, Akko?" grunted out her evil twin, perturbed by this. Clearly she hadn't expected the girl to do this.

"I am coming to slay the beast," she stated simply and eyes glowing fiercely, raising her blade up high. "Come fight me."

She had no confidence in her own skills with the blade but she had no other choice. "You should be fighting the Jabberwocky," evil Akko gritted out, unsettled as she slid down from her horse. Behind Akko, the beast roared out but before it could come closer, Snowdrop jumped down hard on it's head, causing it to smack harshly into the ground.

"Take Akko on, Akko. And I shall hold off the beast for you," she proclaimed, for the first time since Akko had seen her, her face determined and airy expression gone. And to Akko's shock, Kitty jumped down as well, to join her twin. "I shouldn't be doing this...but you're fighting evil Akko and I have reason to believe that you truly do care about Dinah if you're doing that."

"She won't win easily, you fools," dark Akko spat. She pulled out her own sword whose blade was black as night. Without another warning she lunged at Akko. As if by magic, Akko's Vorpal blade countered it. It was like the weapon knew how to fight for her. She wasn't going to complain about that. She was, however, worried for the two Diana's.

The Jabberwocky had pulled its head out of the ground and was looking pissed by the damage dealt to it.

It sent out a roar that sent Snowdrop's and Kitty's hair flinging backwards. Snowdrop held out a hand for Kitty to take. "Let's do this together. Let us no longer fight anymore."

Kitty nodded her head soberly and together their hands joined. Magic radiated from their bodies and together they strode steadily towards the beast with the gaping jaws. The Jabberwocky began to look a bit worried at the power they had, but nevertheless it powered on. As did Akko against her own self. Sparks went flying through the air as metal clashed on metal. Akko surprisingly was good at defending against her own self and the other version of her was clearly getting frustrated and annoyed with that.

"Why won't you just let this go?" it hollered out at her. "Why can't you just let things be."

"Because I don't want you. And I don't need you," Akko said. "You're the one whose stopping me from being myself truly and I won't let that happen. Just like I won't let you convince Diana that she doesn't feel the same way."

"Stop it!" evil Akko hissed. "I don't want to hear another false word from your mouth!" She swung down hard, and Akko parried the blow, her hands vibrating from the force of it. She grit her teeth. She wasn't tired yet, but she was worried for her friend and didn't want to leave her alone with the beast any longer. Regardless, they would need the Vorpal sword to destroy the beast and Akko had it right now.

"My words aren't false!" Akko protested. She was certain now. Things had been a bit complicated between Akko and Diana for a little bit but suddenly Akko could make sense of things. Her desperate need to save her friend and to right the wrongs between them was because she considered Diana more than just a simple friend. She had even gone to another world to save her. And Diana felt the same as Akko. There must be a side inside her that tried to bury all this. That was why Kitty existed. But Kitty was weakening in her resolve and she was even helping Snowdrop now. Akko just had to keep up what she was doing. And she was sure something in this world would break and give and everything would be alright once more.

And once it was alright, Akko would tell Diana exactly what it was she thought about her.

"I care for her. I care for Diana. For all the parts of her; the good and bad. And I won't leave until I have her back," Akko determined.

Her evil version snarled in anger and began to swing harder. Akko nearly stumbled under the force of the blows and she had to dodge because she could not block all of them. "Don't say that!"

"But it's true. I like Diana. I like her a lot." Akko considered something. "No, I don't only like her. I love her."

"Stop that!" the evil Akko hissed and dropped to her knees, weakened. She clutched her chest, in pain. It felt strange to watch herself hurt without feeling the actual pain, but Akko could do nothing about this now, except press on.

"I love her. Love all the sides of her," Akko continued and her visage dropped even lower to the ground, screaming in pain as she broke apart into dark sand and collapsed into a dirty pile in front of Akko. Even her sword turned to sand.

Akko had done it. She had defeated the evil holding herself back. Now, it was time to help Diana. "Diana!" she called out and both cat girls turned their heads to look at her. Snowdrop's face was full of love and Kitty's was cautious. The beast behind them had been pummeled by their magic and though it was black and blue and looking a bit out of sorts, it still wasn't defeated.

"Catch!" she threw the sword and it arched through the air towards them. Both raised one hand and caught it. Both still holding it, they rushed at the Jabberwocky and drove the sword into the underside of it's jaw. It let out a gurgled shriek and then exploded into shards that fell everywhere.

Mission done, the Vorpal sword simply turned into air. Both Diana's turned to Akko.

"You mean it?" Kitty asked. Somehow she had heard Akko's confession from before.

Akko nodded her head, flushing. "Yea, I do." She knew Diana felt the same but would she accept it? Kitty looked on at Snowdrop who was smiling serenely.

"It's okay," she assured. "Everything will be fine."

Kitty let out a heavy breath. "I guess it's okay." She gave Akko a smile and then closed her eyes. As she did, she began to turn to sand and in mere seconds she was gone. When Akko turned to look she saw that Diana was standing where Snowdrop had been. And she looked confused. "Where are we? And why does my head hurt?" She rubbed a hand over her forehead and smacked her lips together. "Why do I taste ash?"

Akko smiled so widely it hurt her face. "Diana!" she cheered and scooped her friend up into a tight hug. She was so happy to see her. It felt like she had been journeying an eternity to get her back.

"A-Akko!" Diana stammered, flushing. She was overcome by the hug.

"I'm so happy to have you back. Don't you ever do something silly like that," Akko said, letting her go. "Man, I can't believe I just told you not to do something silly. For once it wasn't me."

"Yes, but what happened?" Diana asked, confused still.

"You kinda went through a mirror. There was an evil version of you that pulled you in and I ran after you and then had to go all over the woods to find you and I ran into so many familiar faces. The headmistress was here. So was Professor Pisces except she was a walrus, and Lukic was a King and Andrew was here too. So were Hannah and Barbara but they were mean and you were here, but you had a cat ear and tail. Oh, and how could I forget, Croix and Finnelan were here too. A lot of people we knew were here. But it wasn't really them. And they all spoke in riddles and all called me Alice and I had to go fight this beast with a magical sword-"

Diana put a hand up to stop Akko's blabbering. "Slow down."

"Sorry," Akko said sheepishly. "It's just a lot to talk about."

"Let's focus on getting out of here," Diana said, this not her first time dealing with oddities and thus she was impatient to vacate this place. Spinning around to take in their surroundings, all she saw was snow and woods around them.

"Oh, before that, I have something important to tell you," Akko said, grabbing Diana and making her face her. This was, after all, the whole reason Akko had won the fight, or even fought in the first place.

"Diana," she started softly, holding the blonde's warm hands in her own. "I love you."

Diana flushed immediately, not expecting this but happy to hear it. "You-you do?!"

"I do. And I know you do too. You don't have to say it if you don't want to- I understand it was the reason why you acted so weird-"

"I want to say it." Diana's shock quickly grew into elation. She wasn't going to ruin this chance. To ruin the opportunity given to her. "I love you too, Akko."

They smiled warmly at each other, lost in a world of their own, realizing only halfway that they were sinking. "Uh, Diana, did you get shorter?" Akko asked, tilting her head in confusion.

Diana shook her head. "No. Are you getting shorter?"

They both looked down and saw that their feet were sinking in a shiny material. Like a mirror. "Here we go again," Diana mumbled out, already having an inkling of a clue as to what was going to happen. "Hold on tight!" she warned and just in time. The material sucked them down quickly after this and they found themselves shooting out of the mirror back in Luna Nova, only sideways. They slid across the floor, almost knocking Finnelan over.

"What is the meaning of this?" she asked, looking angrily down at them.

Amanda, Lotte and Sucy stood behind her, looking sheepish. "Sorry, we didn't know how else to help you," Lotte apologized.

"Um..." Akko started, for the professor was looking at her like she had been the cause of all this.

"It was my fault," Diana said, rising to her feet and dusting off her robes. "I got sucked into the mirror world and it was Akko who rescued me."

Finnelan looked very skeptical of this but she jerked her head to the side. "Both of you, in my office."

Akko let out a tired sigh. Ugh, why did every adventure end up in the office? Well, at least they were back safe and as the two of them walked behind Finnelan's rigid back, they exchanged looks with each other, allowing their pinkies to link up.

They may be in trouble now, but it had brought them a better understanding of each other and Akko could get in all the trouble in the world as long as she could keep this new revelation between her and Diana.

And something in Diana's soft smile, expressed the same sentiments.


	6. Solving the Riddles

* * *

_Down you fell deep into your mind_   
_Off to wonderland, leaving what's real behind_   
_Your a riddle I can't seem to read_   
_Your love a fairy tale; too hard to believe!_

_-Wonderland, Blood on the Dance Floor-_

* * *

It was a month after Diana's and Akko's adventures in the mirror. And about a month from when they started offically dating.

Given all they had been through to get to this point they were open with each other and communicated their feelings expressly. They didn't want to throw away this chance they had and a small part of them was worried that if they delayed this relationship for too long than those characters from those twisted worlds would find them and send them on another mind bending adventure. They had had enough of those, thank you very much. Even Akko with her propensity for trouble making and accidental adventures, found herself avoiding anything of the sort like a vampire avoids sunlight.

Sucy and Lotte noticed this behavior from their friend and found it odd but figured something had happened to Akko in the mirror world to make her like this. They worried she was possessed by some sort of spirit but she willingly underwent their tests to prove to them it was her. And then, they had been stumped by this, taking a while to digest that maybe Akko simply was growing up out of her ways. Or that being a closer friend to Diana had given her some common sense.

Diana hadn't changed much from her adventures except that she was more open about her emotions and didn't put up this tough emotionless front. On top of that she made sure to put Hannah and Barbara in check. Whenever she noticed the girls being mean, she reprimanded them, because she didn't want them spouting meanness to others. She was all about spreading good vibes to others, as Akko liked to call them.

Nobody else knew about their relationship because they were keeping it a secret right now. Neither of them felt brave enough to openly flaunt it. And in a way they liked this being their little secret. It was like they were in a world only the two of them with no one else to invade it. A world full of sweet emotions and soft kisses and holding hands.

Though sometimes it was annoying having to glance over their shoulder to make sure no one else was watching them so they could sneak in a quick kiss or hug. If their friends noticed their closeness they didn't comment on it, except to say how happy they were that it all got resolved and that they were no longer avoiding each other.

But while their adventures in other dimensions were over for now, it didn't mean they didn't have questions on it. Both of them had traveled to other worlds that shared similar characters and why was that? Both of them were connected in a way, though they had no idea how. So Diana did some research. It took her a while to find anything useful but her sharp eye and good work ethic latched onto something.

She proudly showed akko the book in which their answers were held. Akko quickly read it but still had a heard time understanding anything. "Huh?" she intelligently asked, scratching her head.

"Akko, the passage here explains that this so called Wonderland experience has only been experienced by a handful of people through the decades. And it's mainly people who are connected through their hearts."

"Connected through the hearts? Like, in love?"

"It could mean love, or it could also mean people who share a common problem. For example, being in an argument with each other. I think that's what the author of this book means; he's not really clear and there weren't enough cases for him to know for sure. And he mentions that there are two worlds these connected people can go to. I must have gone to the first one and you to the second."

"But why did we go there? And why were people we knew there?"

Diana pointed to a line in the text. "He says that this is because the magic of the world allows our own mind to find our problems, understand them, and then confront them. Which is what I did in my wonderland. Which also explains why I was so confused and stressed when I was there. because my mind was trying to solve what I was hiding and that were my feelings for you." Diana did not blush to admit this. She no longer felt ashamed for feeling the way she did about Akko.

"But you only knocked your head out for that. How is that possible?"

Diana flipped forwards and to a diagram of mushrooms. "You girls found me not far from a patch of these kinds of mushrooms. Apparently they release a special scent that only affects those sleeping into hallucinating." Akko really hoped Sucy hadn't collected any of that kind.

"So then if your wonderland was caused by mushrooms, why did I enter a similar world through a mirror?"

Diana flipped through more pages in the book. "There's not really a concrete explanation of that, but it does mention that the mushrooms magic can be combined with other magics. And I think that's what happened in the case of the mirror. Maybe it was infused with the power of the mushrooms to cause a sort of walk in hallucination. That instead of dreaming your mind's problems, you were able to actually walk through them."

That explanation made the most sense. "But then why wasn't the world catered to your problems, but mine?" Akko inquired, understanding this a lot more with Diana explaining everything. Plus, it helped that Akko found Diana so cute when she was like this.

"Well, maybe some of my problems were there. For example, you mentioned seeing Amanda and Jasminka in there. The two of them were from my previous hallucinations, as were Hannah and Barbara. So, it's possible that the two of our problems combined. Though, I don't really recall much of that world."

"It's because you were split in two. And I was the villain there because you felt like I was an enemy to your feelings."

"Yes, about that-sorry-"

"Don't apologize," Akko assured her girlfriend, not wanting her to feel guilty about what happened. "I was my own enemy too. I had to defeat her so we could both get here, and I wouldn't have it any other way." Akko offered a goofy grin that Diana could not help but return.

"I guess those mushrooms really did help us out. If we didn't accidentally stumble into them, we might not be together."

"Yea, and now that we've figured out why this all happened, why don't we check out our 'connected hearts' more," Akko offered. "You wanna get ice cream downtown?"

"Of course," Diana said. She could do her homework later, because to her Akko was more important than it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The main story is over; next chapter will explain away the secret meanings behind some of the images/ actions in the story.


	7. Resolution and Conclusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This story didn't have as many secret meanings as the first one, only because Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll didn't have as much meaning behind it's characters for me to be able to use. But, there was some stuff I still did incorporate and this is the explanation behind the symbols and actions and words.

Chapter One: The Poem on the Mirror

_Trying to run and hide..._

_Trying to find peace from your problem..._

_Well, why don't you come inside..._

_A journey can solve them..._

_From your problem we can shelter you..._

_In the coldest blue..._

_No one will bother you..._

_Not even what is a lie and what is true..._

_We will take pity..._

_On your broken heart..._

_Snowdrop and Kitty..._

_Will tear anyone apart..._

This poem is referencing past events and future events. It talks about how Diana is trying to hide from her problems and that this world can offer her respite from them by freezing out her emotions in snow- thus why the world is cold and in a state of winter- even the lies she's told herself about her true feelings will not hurt her. Additionally, the poem foreshadows two new characters- Snowdrop and Kitty- who will protect Diana's feelings from intrusion.

Chapter Two: When Holbrooke Calls Akko Alice

_"All in good time Alice."_

_"My name is not Alice!"_

_"You are, because are you not searching for Dinah?"_

_"Who?" Akko scratched her head._

_"Your cat." Holbrooke was still rubbing her chin and looking down at the chaotic board._

_"I don't have a cat. I'm looking for my friend, Diana! She's blonde and this tall," Akko indicated with her hand._

_"Don't leave this game unfinished, Alice."_

_"I'm not Alice!" Akko cried out, losing her patience. "And I've never played chess with you."_

This is because Akko is functioning as Alice in this sense, in coming back to this world and having to fight the Jabberwocky. Additionally, Diana is referenced as Dinah several times throughout the chapters. This is because in the books Alice had a cat named Dinah who also had two kittens called Snowdrop and Kitty. This is where the idea for Diana being a cat came from, though in this example both Snowdrop and Kitty are just opposing sides of herself and when together they form Dinah which then equals Diana's true self.

_"It must be the Hatta and the Hare," Andrew answered, pointing in the direction of a small path off to the side that Akko hadn't noticed before. "Go that way."_

_"Will it take me to Diana?"_

_"It will take you somewhere, and that is better than nowhere."_

_"That's not helping me at all, Andrew," Akko scowled down at the tiny man on her shoulder._

_"I can only take you to places I know. To look for. The rest of the discoveries must be yours. You must find Dinah of your own intent."_

_"I do intend to find her. Is my resolve lacking?" Akko was perplexed by that comment. Did Andrew think that Akko didn't want to find Diana because they were currently fighting? "And her name is not Dinah. Why does everyone think I'm looking for some sort of cat?"_

_Andrew said nothing to that because they had finally arrived into a meadow of sorts. In the middle of the snowy field was a table and at it, two occupants. "Amanda? Jasminka?" So they were here too? Amanda was holding up a bow string in one hand and sawing at a teapot with it. Jasminka was banging on the dishes and tea cups with some forks. And for some reason this was able to conjure up the sound of violins, guitars, pianos and drums._

_"Look who it is," Amanda commented, stopping her motions. Jasminka did too and the horrible music stopped for once. "Took you a while to find us."_

_"Are you the Amanda from the real world?" Akko asked._

_"Amanda? Who is she? I'm the Hatta. I used to be called the Mad Hatter but then Diana came to my world and changed some things so I no longer have anything to be mad about. Instead, now I can be glad. Should I call myself the Glad Hatter, perhaps?" Amanda turned to Jasminka to ask this. The girl merely shoved a cookie into her mouth. "Hmm, you're right. I should think more about it." Then she turned to Akko. "And this is the Hare. She used to be called the March Hare, but it's no longer March. Time has run again and now it's December. Hmm, December Hare for you then?" She turned to Jasminka once more only for the bigger girl to chug down some hot steaming tea with a deadpan expression. "Yes, I suppose the name is a bit too cold. You are more merry than that."_

_"Hatta, do you know Diana then? Did she come this way?" Akko was getting hopeful. Maybe Andrew had led her on the right path after all._

_"Oh no, I haven't seen her since she awoke, but I did see a cat come through this way."_

_Akko had no idea what the Hatta could mean by not seeing Diana once she awoke. Had Diana met these characters somewhere in the past? And what the heck was going on with everyone talking about cats? She supposed that was as best a hint she would get. Maybe they thought Diana was a cat? Just like they thought Akko was some girl named Alice. "Where did the cat go?"_

_"Now," Amanda chuffed. "Where is the fun in that? Easy answers does not a good adventure make. And you want to do this on your own." She mixed in some butter into her tea and chugged it._

Amanda and Jasminka are back in this story because in Lewis Carroll's book Through the Looking Glass, the Hatter and March Hare are both in the following book, however it's not the same version of them. They are called the Hatta and the Hare which is why they're called this here too. It also clues in that there is some sort of connection between the world Diana was in when she went to rescue Akko and this world where Akko saved Diana. And Amanda tells Akko that she can only reach Diana, reach her heart, on her own. And that she should only want to do it herself for surely she does not want others getting Diana's affections.

Also, the characters aren't helpful to Akko because her feelings for Diana are something she needs to come to terms with herself.

Chapter Three: Akko, Snowdrop and the Tweedle's

" _Her name is Diana," Akko corrected and rubbed the back of her head with her free hand. Snowdrop hadn't let go of Akko's hand in all this time they had been walking and Akko wondered why. It felt nice, though, so she wasn't going to complain. "And I'm looking for her because-"_

_"Because she told you she loved you?" Snowdrop filled in with a knowing tilt of her head._

_"Uh, no, yea, maybe? How do you know that?" Akko stammered through her response, feeling flustered at hearing once more how Diana had confessed to her. Because Akko knew it be a confession but why it had happened, Akko had no clue and Diana had not offered any._

_"I know a great many things about Dinah. She's very close to my heart after all," Snowdrop answered, touching her chest where her heart was. "But unfortunately she's missing."_

_"Do you know where she is?" Akko asked hopefully._

_"I do not know," Snowdrop shook her head and her ears flattened at the sad thought. "But the path to her will become revealed in time as long as you follow the instructions given to you."_

_"What instructions?"_

_"To find the Vorpal sword and slay the Jabberwocky. When adventuring, things have a tendency to arise that naturally would not have," Snowdrop assured. "That is why we are on the way to those who can help us find what we are looking for. But it is so romantic that you are seeking for your love," Snowdrop gushed, blushing. "Ah, young love. She had declared her love for you before she was tragically spirited away and now it's your turn to rescue her."_

_"It didn't quite go like that," Akko said, flushing as she recalled Diana's words. Those words had confused Akko at first before elating her. But then they had proved to be cause for much melancholy for her because Diana refused to see her after she had uttered those three magic words. "Diana told me she loved me and then ran off without letting me talk to her about it."_

_"Oh, that's horrid!" Snowdrop gasped and pulled the two of them to a stop. "I would never do that to you Akko. You are too lovely to be rude to. I would shower you with all my love if you gave me the chance." Here she cupped Akko's cheeks and looked on at her with such unabashed love that Akko squirmed, her heart beat accelerating. Why was Snowdrop like this? Why was she so...flirty with Akko? Akko didn't know how to deal with such things._

_As they stood like that, Snowdrop began to lean in closer and Akko, her body not at all ready for such a huge leap, backed away, slipping free from Snowdrop's hold before what she guessed would be a kiss happened between them. "Uh, thanks for the sentiments," she quickly got out, averting her gaze from Snowdrop's, "but uh, I think I saw someone over there." And she pointed to the snow covered bushes were nothing definitely had been._

_Snowdrop sighed out in disappointment, knowing Akko was bluffing. "Oh dear, it seems you haven't opened up your mind entirely."_

_"My mind?"_

_Snowdrop nodded her head sagely. "Until you do you will not be able to see the path on which your friend walks. It seems I have a lot of work to do with you." Snowdrop patted a snow free bench that had suddenly appeared by her side. "Come, sit down, and tell me all about your friend."_

_Akko was confused as to what Snowdrop wanted from her. "Shouldn't we be looking for the sword? People are getting attacked by the Jabberwocky and there is no telling who could be in danger!" Akko had blanched at facing such a monster in this realm but her noble heart would not allow her to back down from this quest and let others get hurt._

_"They will be fine, but you will not be if you do not figure out both reflections of you." Snowdrop was insistent._

_"What do you mean by that?" Snowdrop was speaking plainly but yet in riddles at the same time. She tentatively moved to Snowdrop, waffling between just telling the cat girl to let them move ahead when suddenly voices became apparent to the both of them. Snowdrop heard them first, her cat ears pricking up. Her face whitened at this and she rose to her feet hastily. "Oh no," she gasped out and Akko twisted her head around before she heard the echoing voices nearing them from behind a patch of trees._

_"What? What's going on now?"_

_"Our common enemies, denial and nonacceptance are approaching. We must make haste." Snowdrop reached for Akko's hand but it was too late. They were spotted before they even took two steps forward. Akko didn't know who to expect next but she certainly didn't expect these two faces. Around the bend came Hannah and Barbara._

_"What do we have here?" Hannah asked, clicking her tongue._

_"Our two girls of the hour," Barbara added. The both of them were wearing matching outfits and weirdly concluding each other's sentences._

_"Tweedledum and Tweedledee, leave us alone!" Snowdrop cried out. "Whatever you have been told, it is wrong. Things need to progress. They must change for both. I know Kitty sent you, but do not listen to her."_

_"Wrong. She did not send us."_

_"I think you know who did," Barbara leered dreadfully, the two of them ever getting closer, closing the space between the two opposing parties._

_"Then what I feared to be true is true," Snowdrop fretted._

Snowdrop is the part of Diana in love with Akko, referenced by the way she acts so lovingly to her. Additionally, she says Akko will not find Diana until she too knows she is love with her. And Snowdrop knows how Diana feels/ said to Akko because she is Diana. When the Tweedle's come they are opponents who wish to stop Akko and Snowdrop from finding Diana and being accepting of love. They were also adversaries when Diana went looking for Akko, only because as Diana's close friends, Diana wonders the most what they will think of her and fears them being unaccepting. Akko also doesn't like them because they have never been kind or tolerant of her.

The reason the Tweedle's are unable to follow them over the snow bank is because this whole world is like a chessboard. Each person has only a set direction they can move in depending on their pieces. Since Akko is merely a pawn she can only move forwards and to the side when attacking. The concept of the world being a chessboard is first seen when Akko is playing against Holbrooke. By versing her, she sets the whole concept of it into motion.

However, people can change their directions by leveling up, such as what Akko and Snowdrop do when they exit the Red King's court later in the chapter after a false trial. They become bishops and are able to move diagonally towards their destination.

Chapter Four: Akko and the Sheep

_This time the sheep let out a bleat._

_"Whelp," Akko rocked back and forth on her heels unproductively. "I guess you're just a sheep. Great." Now what was Akko to do?_

_Maybe she had to take the boat to the island on the horizon?_

_Shrugging for she didn't know what else to do, she made shooing motions at the sheep. "I kinda need to use the boat. If you wouldn't mind getting out so I could use it."_

_The sheep did not move, only blinked at Akko as it chewed on it's hay._

_"I guess you're coming with me then, sheep," Akko said as she pushed the boat. It was heavy, no thanks to the added weight of the sheep inside. When it hit the water, Akko jumped in and using the oars began to navigate the dirty waters. The sheep stared at her the whole time, still chewing on that same strand of hay. Just watching the sheep chew rhythmically made Akko sleepy for some reason. It made her want to just put the oars down and just...just float in the ocean with this sheep. She had the strangest urge to do nothing._

_She shook her head when she realized she was drooling by looking at the sheep. "Stop that," she chided herself, slapping her face to awaken her and to motivate her. But it was hard going, her mind wanting to slip into a haze every couple of seconds. In the end, she decided to sit with her back to the sheep and row in this manner. She couldn't see the island this way but it was easier, because she no longer felt like giving up. The sheep was having an odd effect on her but Akko didn't dwell on it, just focused on rowing until she felt the boat shudder to a stop. She had hit land._

This is the sheep of compliance. It tries to lull Akko into doing nothing, into being okay with her situation. By not engaging with it, or not looking at it, she is able to get past it and to her goal.

_Kitty seemed to almost waver here and Akko was silently urging Snowball on, urging her to win Kitty over to their side and quick before the Jabberwocky awoke. The monster was humongous, and scarier looking than anything Akko's had to brave before._

_"Pathetic," a low voice growled out behind Akko and she turned her horse to see who it was. She gasped out loud, almost choking on her shock. It was her, but another version of herself. With white hair, glowing green eyes and wearing all black armor. She rode up on her black steed until she stood not too far from Akko. "Are you really going to give in that easily, Kitty? I thought we were here to protect Dinah's heart and not endanger it more. Snowball is vapid, do not listen to her delusions or her dreams. I am part of Akko, and I know her feelings are not true."_

_"Hey, stop lying!" Akko shouted out, getting frustrated by this back and forth and by the false declarations being cast into the air. "I care for Diana and you can't convince me otherwise. I'm here after all to save her! And who even are you?"_

_"Isn't that obvious? I'm you. And I'm the one who orchestrated this whole event. I caused Diana to disappear, I sent the Tweedle's on you, and I freed the Jabberwocky so that it could eat all my problems away."_

Akko is the enemy in the story because her own self is holding her back from accepting her feelings for Diana.

Chapter Five: The Jabberwocky and Akko

" _No, I do care for Diana. I do!" Akko said and suddenly things became clearer to her. Diana had to have strong feelings for her. But she also had to be conflicted and that was what caused Snowdrop and Kitty. If she could get the two to reconcile. To work out their differences...and clearly her evil side was also a part of her. Part of something she had a hard time accepting._

_She turned her back on the Jabberwocky, though it took every last ounce of her bravery to do that._

_How could she not have seen this after all, when it was so simple and glaring of a fact to see now. The Jabberwocky, no matter it's might, wasn't the beast to defeat her. It was Akko who had to fight herself. She strode towards her darker version who still sat on her horse. The dragon behind her watched her do it, confused by this sudden course of action._

_"What are you doing, Akko?" grunted out her evil twin, perturbed by this. Clearly she hadn't expected the girl to do this._

_"I am coming to slay the beast," she stated simply and eyes glowing fiercely, raising her blade up high. "Come fight me."_

While everyone thought it was the Jabberwocky which would be the big issue, it's actually just a red herring- something the problem is blamed at so they don't get to the real issue but Akko figures it out and faces her own self. And by doing that, by accepting her feelings, she defeats evil Akko. And by telling Snowdrop and Kitty her feelings, she destroys Kitty and thus brings back Diana.

On another note, the reason this world is filled with professors as opposed to students like Diana's world was in the previous story, is because Akko has more trouble connecting with her professors while Diana had the issue of connecting with her peers.


End file.
